Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 266,421 Shares of Danaher Corporation $DHR

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,928,406 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after selling 266,421 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Danaher were worth $670,375,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital International Investors raised its position in shares of Danaher by 1.9% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 16,758,240 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $3,318,926,000 after acquiring an additional 312,951 shares during the last quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP raised its position in shares of Danaher by 34.0% during the third quarter. Generation Investment Management LLP now owns 6,654,666 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,319,354,000 after acquiring an additional 1,689,020 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its position in shares of Danaher by 5.0% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,452,118 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $882,677,000 after acquiring an additional 211,053 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Danaher by 0.7% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,369,219 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $866,241,000 after acquiring an additional 28,583 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Danaher by 104.7% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,333,056 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $991,923,000 after acquiring an additional 2,216,789 shares during the last quarter. 79.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on DHR shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Friday, March 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Danaher in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Danaher from $270.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Danaher from $275.00 to $245.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Argus reduced their price objective on Danaher from $265.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $240.70.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Gregory M. Milosevich sold 1,320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.01, for a total transaction of $274,573.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,060,642.99. This trade represents a 20.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 10.80% of the company’s stock.

Danaher Price Performance

DHR opened at $174.29 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $193.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $213.25. Danaher Corporation has a 12-month low of $172.34 and a 12-month high of $242.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $123.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.71, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.81.

Danaher (NYSE:DHR) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The conglomerate reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $5.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6 billion. Danaher had a return on equity of 10.91% and a net margin of 14.89%.Danaher’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.88 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Danaher Corporation will post 8.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Danaher Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 27th were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 27th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. This is an increase from Danaher’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. Danaher’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.95%.

Danaher Profile

Danaher Corporation (NYSE: DHR) is a global science and technology company that designs, manufactures and markets products and services for the life sciences, diagnostics, and environmental and applied markets. The company organizes its operations into business segments focused on Life Sciences, Diagnostics, and Environmental & Applied Solutions, supplying instruments, reagents, software and related services that support research, clinical testing, biopharmaceutical development, and industrial and environmental monitoring.

Products and services in Danaher’s portfolio include analytical and diagnostic instruments, laboratory consumables and reagents, digital and software solutions for workflow and data management, field and industrial monitoring equipment, and service and maintenance programs.